Cargo pallet sling



March 8, 1966 F. SCIBILIA CARGO PALLET SLING Filed April 5, 1964 United States Patent 3,239,265 CARGO PALLET SLING Frank Seibilia, 1518 Ryder St., Brooklyn, N.Y. Filed Apr. 3, 1964, Ser. No. 357,072 2 Claims. (Cl. 294-67) This invention relates to a sling for cargo pallets used in loading ships and more particularly to a spring loaded sling adapted to lockingly seize the opposed ends of a pallet leg support beam.

The conventional cargo pallet used to load and unload ships at dockside is made of two heavy beams disposed in suitably distant parallel relationship and forming the leg support beams, and employing a plurality of parallel spaced-apart platform slats nailed or otherwise secured to said beams at right angles thereto.

The slats are of suitable thickness to give strength and are each disposed at suitable distance extending beyond the respective end beams.

In conventional loading of a cargo ship using the conventional cargo pallet a pair of conventional slings are employed.

These conventional slings are made of suitably strong timber of a length greater than that of a leg support and are each provided with apertures adjacent their respective ends to receive a lifting rope or cable so that the sling can be simultaneously lifted at each end.

In the loading of a ship with cargo, the cargo items are suitably placed on the platform slats of the cargo pallet. Next, a conventional sling is disposed against the outer surface of each leg support beam and under the extending portion of the platform slats.

The ropes of suitable length attached to the two ends of each of the conventional sling are then gathered together and secured to a grapple hook of a winch operated lifting cable which in turn is secured to a winch.

The operation of the winch causes the lifting cable to rise and to lift the loaded cargo pallet through the media of the four ropes secured to the respective ends of the timber slings.

Occasionally, the cargo shifts on the pallet or for other causes a timber sling slides out from under the over extending slats, so that the cargo falls, sometimes with injury to dockside workers.

The device of this invention provides sling means for seizing the ends of the leg support beams in a firm lockingly clamped manner so that slippage of the sling away from the pallet is impossible during the lifting and loading operations.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a novel sling having end means for engaging the ends of the leg support beams of a cargo pallet in a firmly locked and clamped relationship.

It is another object to provide a sling having spring loaded end clamps.

It is another object to provide a pallet sling of rigid construction yet of relatively inexpensive manufacture adapted to support heavy cargo weights.

It is yet a further object to provide a sling having common spring operating opposed end clamps.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following descriptive disclosure of and illustrative embodiment in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cargo pallet showing the use of a pair of slings of this invention disposed in seizing relationship to the respective leg support beams of the pallet,

FIG. 2 is an enlarged end view of a sling showing a clamp disposed about the end of a leg support beam,

FIG. 3 is a section view taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing the manner of securing the pair of extensible ice end clamps within a common tubular element, the clamps being secured to one another by a common tension coil spring continuously pulling the clamps inwardly, and

FIG. 4 is a section view taken on line 44 of FIG. 2 and showing the manner of captively retaining the end clamps in limited travel movement in said tubular element.

Turning now to the drawing, a cargo pallet 10 having a pair of leg support beams 11 is provided with a plurality of suitable parallel disposed spaced-apart slats 12.

The sling of this invention 13 is provided with a suitably strong and suitably long tube 14 of predetermined length and of rectangular cross section. The length of the tube 14 is of a predetermined size and suitably less than the length of beam 11 (FIG. 3).

A suitably long bar 15 of suitable rectangular cross section is provided with a slot 16 and disposed slidingly in each end of the tubular element 14, each bar 15 extending suitably from its respective end of tube 14.

The inner end of each bar 15 is provided with a vertical cut or channel 17 suitably wide to receive the hook end of a coil spring 18. A pin 19 is disposed through apertures made in the opposing walls of the cut 17, the ends of pins 19 being flush with the surface of bar 15.

The respective ends of the coil spring 18 are secured to the respective pins 19 thus causing both of the opposed bars 15 to be continuously pulled or urged inwardly.

A suitable rivet pin 20 is suitably disposed at each end through the tube 14 and the slot 16 of a respective rod 15 thereby limiting the amount of travel of a rod 15 in the tube 14.

A right angle clamp plate 21 is bolted at the end of each of the bars 15 by means of a pair of nut and bolt combinations 22. The depth of the clamp is such as to snugly embrace a leg support beam 11 of a pallet when in engagement therewith (FIG. 3).

The clamp 21 is preferably provided with converging sloping edges 21X to space the top surface of the clamp at or above the slats 12 of a pallet (FIG. 2).

As shown in FIG. 4, the bar 15 is provided with a cut-out portion 23 on its outer end to permit a dual apertured swing plate 24 to be secured thereabove by means of a nut and bolt combination 25.

A back up plate 26, preferably integral with clamp 21 by bridge portion 26X (FIG. 4) is used in securing the nut and bolts 22 and 25. This back up plate 26 is provided with a ledge 27 to form a thicker portion thereof. The ledge 27 of plate 26 engages bar 15 adjacent the cutout 23 in a firm relationship and permitting the swing plate 24 to be loosely rotated on the bolt 25 (FIGS. 2 and 4).

The sling cables 30 used to secure the sling of this invention to a winch lifting cable 31 by means of a hook 32, is secured to the swing plate 24 through an aperture therein, using a permanently secured cable 30 (FIG. 2) or optionally a cable having a hook on each end.

In securing the sling to a loaded cargo pallet the clamp 21 ends of the sling are manually pulled out by the dock workers so that the tip 21Y of each clamp is extended beyond the respective end of leg beam 11 and against the action of the spring 18.

Upon release of the clamps 21 they are pulled inwardly to lockingly and clampingly eubrace beam 11 as shown in FIG. 3. In this locked position the sling cannot slide out from under the pallet regardless of the tilt of the cargo platform.

Thus the sling of this invention is a safety sling.

Clearly, the sling of this invention is of operable construction where one end clamp is fixed and only the other end clamp is spring loaded.

Manifestly, other obvious modifications can be made in this invention without departing from the scope thereof but all such modifications are deemed to be within the claims herein.

I claim:

1. In a cargo pallet lifting device having a tubular rectangular member, a rectangular rod slidingly and captively disposed in each end of said tubular member, a coil spring secured to the inner ends of said rods for constantly urging said rods together and hook means for engaging a leg beam of said pallet, the improvement consisting of an integral hook having a converging clamp portion adapted to be disposed around a pallet beam with the top of said clamp portion disposed above the surface of the slats of said pallet, said clamp portion having a flange having a plurality of apertures therein; a back up plate portion having an undercut ledge to receive a rod, parallel to said flange, and having a plurality of apertures to mate with said flange apertures, and a bridge portion uniting said clamp portion and said back up plate portion whereby the protruding extension of a respective rod is slidingly and captively disposed between said undercut ledge of back up plate and the top surface of said bridge portion and bolted therebetween.

2. The lifting device of claim 1 in combination with a flat swing plate and a bolt for securing said swing plate intermediate said flange and said back up plate.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,789,858 4/1957 Kughler 29481 2,886,367 5/1959 Montanino 29467 FOREIGN PATENTS 708,860 5/1954 Great Britain.

GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner.

G. F. ABRAHAM, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A CARGO PALLET LIFTING DEVICE HAVING A TUBULAR RECTANGULAR MEMBER, A RECTANGULAR ROD SLIDINGLY AND CAPTIVELY DISPOSED IN EACH END OF SAID TUBULAR MEMBER, A COIL SPRING SECURED TO THE INNER ENDS OF SAID RODS FOR CONSTANTLY URGING SAID RODS TOGETHER AND HOOK MEANS FOR ENGAGING A LEG BEAM OF SAID PALLET, THE IMPROVEMENT CONSISTING OF AN INTEGRAL HOOK HAVING A CONVERGING CLAMP PORTION ADAPTED TO BE DISPOSED AROUND A PALLET BEAM WITH THE TOP OF SAID CLAMP PORTION DISPOSED ABOVE THE SURFACE OF THE SLATS OF SAID PALLET, SAID CLAMP PORTION HAVING A FLANGE HAVING A PLURALITY OF APERTURES THEREIN; A BACK UP PLATE PORTION HAVING AN UNDERCUT LEDGE TO RECEIVE A ROD, PARALLEL TO SAID FLANGE, AND HAVING A PLURALITY OF APERTURES TO MATE WITH SAID FLANGE APERTURES, AND A BRIDGE PORTION UNITING SAID CLAMP PORTION AND SAID BACK UP PLATE PORTION WHEREBY THE PROTRUDING EXTENSION OF A RESPECTIVE ROD IS SLIDINGLY AND CAPTIVELY DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID UNDERCUT LEDGE OF BACK UP PLATE AND THE TOP SURFACE OF SAID BRIDGE PORTION AND BOLTED THEREBETWEEN. 